Most Auxiliary Engine Damage Caused by Human Error

Photo: The Swedish Club

An investigation by The Swedish Club into auxiliary engine damage has revealed that the majority of all damage takes place immediately after maintenance work. A key finding is that 55 percent of casualties occur within only 10 percent of the time between overhaul (TBO), corresponding to the first 1,000 hours or so of operation after overhaul. In most cases the damage occurs only a few hours after start up.

The report, Auxiliary Engine Damage, also finds that container vessels have a significantly higher claims frequency due to the larger number of installed engines on these vessels. In addition these engines have considerable output, leading to higher repair costs compared with other vessels.

Auxiliary Engine Damage, the latest report from The Swedish Club, has been created in response to the Club’s members’ concerns over damage to auxiliary engines – a significant segment of machinery claims, both in number and in cost.

Peter Stålberg, Senior Technical Adviser at The Swedish Club explained, "Auxiliary engines run at high revolutions and have a common lubrication system for both cylinder and crank case lubrication. They are not under the same strict regime from the classification society as the main engine, and maintenance is often carried out by the vessel crew."

Stålberg continued, "We see incorrect maintenance and wrongful repair in all too many cases, and poor lubrication management is also a major contributing factor to auxiliary engine break downs. With an average repair cost of more than $345,000, we cannot emphasise enough the principle that prevention is better than cure."